Sir Alfred J. Munnings, P.R.A., 1878-1959

Howard Young Galleries, New York
Mr. and Mrs. John Hay Whitney (acquired from the above in 1932)

New York, Wildenstein Gallery, Alfred J. Munnings:  Images of the Turf and Field, 1983, no. 9
Saratoga Springs, National Museum of Racing, A Selection of Equestrian Art from the Collection of Mr. and Mrs. John Hay Whitney, 1989, no. 25

Colour, London, July 1916, illustrated p. 9

This early racing scene clearly anticipates the later racing pictures to which Munnings’ name remains inexorably linked. Munnings first exhibited a racing picture at the Royal Academy in 1915 entitled, Country Races: the Start, which is stylistically very reminiscent to the present work.  The jockey wears identical blue-and-white striped silks and cap in both paintings, and the horses portrayed have the same distinctive four white socks. Given the close date of the Royal Academy painting, it is possible that the jockey depicted in the present work is Munnings’ groom-model, Ned, who appears in many of his pictures of this period.

Munnings focuses the viewer’s attention on the winning pair silhouetting them both against the cloudy sky. The vivid blue of the jockey’s silks is a strong accent against an otherwise limited palette. The rest of the canvas, as if on the periphery of one’s vision, is painted in soft focus, providing only an impression of the spectators and the hustle and bustle of the occasion. The brilliant white cloth in the basket draws our attention to the rustic orange seller on the right, the central character in Munnings’ earlier painting The Gala Day, 1902, in the Harris Museum and Art Gallery.  

We are grateful to Lorian Peralta - Ramos for her assistance in cataloguing this painting.